Member Spotlight: Rodney Gordy

This month our Member Spotlight shines on SBPA Head Writer Rodney Gordy!

Rodney is the Director of Licensing at PrimalHouse Music, a production music library that provides non-commercial music for placement in content creations including films, TV shows and commercials across a variety of platforms. Rodney has been in the production music industry for over 20 years. Rodney uses his acquired musical knowledge and listening skills to help his clients find the right music for their needs.

Born in Detroit, MI, Rodney graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from University of Michigan – Ann Arbor. Soon after graduating, Rodney drove cross-country to Los Angeles to begin his career working in the music publishing industry. He went to work for Motown Records, the ground-breaking record company founded by his uncle, Berry Gordy Jr. Over the years, Rodney has held a number of positions at various entertainment companies including Sony and Viacom. Rodney likes the freedom and flexibility afforded by working in a creative environment. He is energized by seeing the results of his efforts on screens, big and small.

Laughter is Rodney’s favorite thing. His all-time favorite show is I Love Lucy and he is currently enjoying Ted Lasso. Rodney has a passion for working out and indulges it by riding his bike to the Hawthorne community pool for a swim with his wife regularly.

Rodney was referred to the SBPA when he was considering a career change. He appreciates the camaraderie and support he’s found at the SBPA. He’s shared his concerns and experiences with the SBPA membership and has received useful feedback and advice. Rodney uses the opportunity to develop his creative writing skills by contributing to the membership as Head Writer of the SBPA Member Spotlight profiles. He is currently a Hawthorne homeowner.

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Member Spotlight: Murphy Witherspoon

This month our Member Spotlight shines on SBPA President Murphy Witherspoon!

–Murphy is a Master-level Process Improvements trainer in Lean Six Sigma, which is a team-focused managerial approach designed to eliminate problems, remove waste and inefficiency, and improve working conditions to provide a better response to customers’ needs. Murphy believes that people, particularly team members and customers, deserve to be cherished — in other words, protected and cared for. Murphy builds teams based on honesty and integrity. 

–A native Angeleno born near Watts and currently living in Carson, He is a product of the local educational systems: Murphy attended Fremont High School in San Pedro and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management/ Manufacturing from California State University, Long Beach. Early in his career, Murphy’s aptitude for leadership was identified and encouraged. Murphy polished this skill while working at Pacific Scientific (PacSci).

–While investigating new job opportunities, Murphy was introduced to Toastmasters International, where members learn valuable oral presentation and speaking skills. This led him to the SBPA. Murphy soon rose to become President of the SBPA, with the goal of helping others learn the leadership process. 

–Murphy has been an avid competitive cyclist. He enjoys the commitment and consistency needed to succeed in cycling. These days, Murphy enjoys watching movies (his favorites are The Matrix, The Patriot and King Kong, the Jack Black version) and attending live music events with his wife and daughter.  Murphy’s passion for mentorship was inspired by his own mentors, Norm Lieberman and Joe Love. Murphy understands that, with empathy and self-improvement, people can be motivated to reach higher. Through assistance with resume writing, mock interviews and networking, Murphy and the SBPA support new members in securing employment and/or new opportunities.

Member Spotlight: Glenn Yamada

This month our SBPA Member Spotlight shines on SBPA Treasurer Glenn Yamada!

Glenn Yamada is an Estate Planning Attorney and founder of HG Estate Planning. Through witnessing the pain his father endured due to the lack of estate planning, Glenn understands the importance of leaving behind a legacy of caring for our loved ones, especially children. Glenn guides his clients through the process to create a plan that truly meets their unique needs in a professional yet compassionate manner.

Born in Japan, raised in Gardena and currently living in San Pedro, Glenn has a deep connection with the South Bay. Glenn graduated from Nathaniel Narbonne High School in Harbor City, attained his B.A. in Philosophy from UCLA, his J.D. law degree from The Ohio State University and returned to UCLA for his Masters in Public Policy degree. Inspired by the pursuit of justice he saw on his favorite TV show, Law and Order, Glenn interned in the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office and transitioned into immigration law after graduation. Disheartened by the general adversarial nature of law, Glenn was receptive when his wife suggested that he use his skill and legal experience in estate planning. Glenn focuses on building relationships based on caring and trust. By listening to his clients and engaging in honest conversation, Glenn constructs a plan – with the foundation of a will, trust, power of attorney and advance health care directive – that ensures that his clients’ desires are carried out as they had wished.

When not attending to his clients’ peace of mind, Glenn enjoys spending time with his wife and extended family. Glenn also fancies singing karaoke (his go-to song is Billy Joel’s Piano Man), playing basketball and appreciating good movies.

After reading the self-help book What Color Is Your Parachute, Glenn acted on the book’s suggestion to find a job search group and discovered the South Bay Professional Association. Glenn was impressed by the welcoming and encouraging atmosphere of the membership. He has learned helpful strategies and tools to challenge his comfort zone, which motivated him to create and engage in group and one-on-one presentations. With practice and constructive feedback, Glenn honed exceptional techniques to be of optimal service to his clients. Glenn looks forward to sharing that same knowledge, fellowship and support with any new or current SBPA members.

Member Spotlight: Harold Salas

This month our SBPA Member Spotlight shines on Harold Salas!
As an SBPA member, Harold served in several capacities and is currently Vice President.

As a certified Data Scientist from University of California, Irvine (UCI) and with a Bachelors in Communications from California State University Dominguez Hills, Harold has over 10 years of experience and brings a wealth of knowledge. Using both Windows 10 and Linux distros, Harold successfully accessed a variety of databases to export, transform and analyze data.

With Harold’s positive (Can Do) attitude, you can count on him to not only find value in the data analyzed, but to share that data with others in a way that is both understandable and valued.

Harold has covered a wide array of topics in data science including data-driven discovery and prediction, data engineering at scale (inspecting, cleaning, transforming, and modeling data), structured and unstructured data, pattern recognition, data mining, data visualization, exporting from different databases, SQL and machine learning. 

Working in different industries and departments Harold is intimately familiar with data associated with Financing, Inventory, Marketing, Manufacturing and other departments. Harold would make a great addition to any team.

At SBPA, Harold’s communication and technical contributions are held in high regard and it is for this reason that Harold Salas has been selected to be in the Member Spotlight.

Click on the link if you wish to know more about Harold Salas.

Member Spotlight: Tamiko Wakabayashi

This month our SBPA Member Spotlight shines on Tamiko Wakabayashi!

A SBPA member, Tamiko has served as Vice President of SBPA. She is also an architectural and interior designer who has worked internationally in Asia and the US. Tamiko is the first initiator of the SBPA Member Spotlight Project and active since 2019.

Hello. My name is Tamiko Wakabayashi. I am very honored to be a first spotlight member of SBPA. I am originally from Japan and have been living in the Southern California since 2012.

I studied Interior Design at Musashino Art University in Tokyo, Japan and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design degree. After the graduation, I started my career as an interior designer at Nakamura Display and Equipment, Corp. where I had various commercial projects such as retail stores, bowling alleys, office spaces, hotels and so on.

After working as an interior designer in Tokyo, Japan for 4 years, I decided to move to the US and to enter into the three-year Master of Architecture program at Washington University in St. Louis. I was shocked to learn how the deign approach between Interior Design and Architecture was so different. I almost felt like I needed to think everything upside-down when I design a building. I finished the program and started my first architecture job as an intern at DTS Shaw Architects (later merged with Perkins & Will) in Boston, Massachusetts. I had experience in residential, commercial, and institutional projects while living in Boston.

In 2007, I returned to Japan. My immigration status needed to be approved by the US government, so I found a job at ARTERIOR, Co. Ltd., the Tokyo-based interior design organization and started working there. The company gave me another opportunity to work on bigger scale commercial projects in Asia. It was fun going back and forth China and Japan to attend design and construction meetings. I could see the fusion of classic and modern aspects happening at the same time in the city of Beijing and other major cities in China at that moment.

My immigration status had been approved, so I moved back to the US with my family in 2012. Since then, I have been living in Torrance. I have worked on small residential and office renovation projects since living in the South Bay and would be happy to get involved in more bigger projects right now. You can find more about me at my website at www.tamikowakabayashi.weebly.com.

I would be happy to meet and help people in the South Bay Community and beyond!